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UNIVERSITY    OF    ILLINOIS    BULLETIN 


Vol.  XXII 


Issued  Weekly 
November  17,  1924 


No.  12 


[Entered  as  second-class  matter  December  11,  1912,  at  the  post  office  at  Urbana,  Illinois  under  the 
Act  of  August  24,  1912.  Acceptance  for  mailing  at  the  special  rate  of  postage  provided  tor  in 
section   1103,  Act  of  October  3,    1917,  authorized  July  31,    1918.]  


EDUCATIONAL  RESEARCH  CIRCULAR  NO.  32 


BUREAU  OF  EDUCATIONAL  RESEARCH 
COLLEGE  OF  EDUCATION 

LATIN   IN    HIGH   SCHOOLS 

by 

F.  J.  Miller 

R.  C.  Flickinger 

Rachel  L.  Sargent 

Ethel  J.  Luke 

Glenna  D.  Thompson 

and  Others 


IAN  31  1925 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
URBANA 


3  7o 


Prefatory  Note 

The  material  for  this  circular  was  prepared  under  the 
direction  of  Professor  H.  J.  Barton  of  the  University  of 
Illinois.  It  is  published  by  the  Bureau  of  Educational  Re- 
search in  accord  with  its  general  policy  of  giving  through  its 
publications  helpful  information  and  suggestions  to  teachers 
and  school  administrators.  It  should,  however,  be  under- 
stood that  this  circular  does  not  represent  the  work  of  the 
Bureau  of  Educational  Research  and  full  credit  for  its  prep- 
aration should  be  given  to  Professor  Barton  and  the  indi- 
vidual authors  mentioned. 

Walter  S.  Monroe,  Director 

Bureau  of  Educational  Research. 
December  9,  1924. 


u  c  , 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

Page 
1.  In  Advance  of  the  Report 

By  F.  J.  Miller,  University  of  Chicago 


2.  Classical  Teachers   in   Athens 

By  R.  C.  Flickixger,   Northwestern   University 


11 


3.  The  Latin  Exhibit  at  Urbana 13 

By  Rachel  L.  Sargent,  University  High   School,   University  of   Illinois 

4.  Description  of  a  Roman  House 17 

By  Ethel  J.  Luke,  Springfield  High  School 

5.  Mason  City  Illustrative  Drawings 21 

By  Glenna  D.  Thompson,  Mason  City  High  School 

1  6.  Miscellaneous 


['. 


Latin  in  High  Schools 

IN  ADVANCE  OF  THE  REPORT 

F.  J.  Miller 

The  great  classical  survey1,  which  has  been  in  the  making  for  the 
past  three  years,  is  complete,  and  the  final  report  is  now  being  written 
by  the  special  investigators.  This  report,  after  one  more  meeting  of 
the  Advisory  Committee,  will  be  published  and  given  to  the  world. 
What  facts  will  be  revealed,  what  recommendations  will  be  made, 
what  lines  of  advance  will  be  proposed,  all  this  remains  to  be  seen. 

The  report  will  be  given  to  the  world.  What  will  the  world  do 
with  it?  How  is  it  to  be  translated  into  effective  action  and  bettered 
conditions  for  the  classics?  How  will  it  escape  burial  in  a  book,  to 
be  read  and  used  by  the  few,  but  unknown  to  or  read  and  soon  for- 
gotten by  the  many,  for  whose  sake  especially  the  survey  has  been 
made? 

The  Service  Bureau  for  Classical  Teachers,  maintained  by  the 
American  Classical  League  at  Teachers  College,  Columbia  Univer- 
sity, under  the  directorship  of  Miss  Frances  E.  Sabin,  is  one  effective 
agency  which,  it  is  hoped  and  expected,  will  carry  on  and  interpret 
the  report  to  teachers  and  friends  of  the  classics  and  to  the  educa- 
tional world.  But  whatever  the  report  reveals  and  recommends,  and 
whatever  special  agencies  are  set  up  to  secure  the  full  values  of  this 
investigation,  its  success  must  depend  to  a  very  large  extent  upon  us 
alone  who  teach  the  classics  and  have  the  interest  of  this  cause  at 
heart.  We  must  receive  the  report;  we  must  familiarize  ourselves 
with  it;  we  must  promulgate  it. 

In  the  meanwhile,  there  are  certain  vital  and  fundamental  things, 
with  which  it  is  quite  possible  the  report  will  not  deal,  but  which 
must  nevertheless  be  done  if  the  classics  are  to  continue  and  prosper, 
things  which  we  teachers  of  the  classics  alone  can  do. 

Some  of  these  things,  which  have  been  most  exercising  my  own 
mind,  I  have  already  discussed  at  some  length  editorially  in  the 
January  and  February  numbers  of  the  Classical  Journal. 


^ince  this  article  was  written,  Part  1  of  the  report,  giving  a  summary  of  results  with 
recommendation,  has  been  published  by  the  Princeton  University  Press.  Copies  may  be  obtained 
gratis    on    application   by  addressing   the   Princeton   University   Press,    Princeton,   New   Jersey. 


JAN3 11925 

VF  ILLINOIS 


The  first  of  these  editorials  was  on  the  wide-spread  scarcity  of 
Latin  teachers,  established  by  official  testimony  from  many  states. 
thus  answering  the  statement  that  there  is  less  and  less  demand  for 
teachers  of  Latin,  a  statement  meant  to  discourage,  or  at  least  tend- 
ing to  discourage  young  students  from  preparing  themselves  to  teach 
this  subject.  There  is,  indeed,  a  wide-spread  and  urgent  call  for 
teachers.  So  far.  then,  from  being  a  matter  of  discouragement  to 
those  who  would  prepare  to  teach  Latin,  the  present  status  is  a  loud 
and  imperative  challenge  to  many  of  our  best  and  most  ambitious 
young  men  and  women  in  both  high  school  and  college  to  devote 
themselves  to  the  teaching  of  a  subject  to  the  teaching  of  which,  for 
centuries  past,  and  in  our  own  generation  as  well,  hundreds  of  the 
brightest  students  have  been  drawn. 

As  for  the  number  of  students  of  Latin  at  present  in  our  schools, 
while  this  has  markedly  decreased  in  proportion  to  the  total  number 
of  students,  still  the  actual  number  has  not  substantially  decreased, 
and,  according  to  statistical  summaries  now  being  tabulated  by  the 
United  States  Bureau  of  Education,  the  number  of  students  studying 
Latin  in  the  secondary  schools  of  the  United  States  has  been  rapidly 
increasing  in  the  last  few  years.  The  further  official  statement  is 
made  that  the  enrollment  in  Latin  slightly  exceeds  the  total  com- 
bined enrollment  in  all  other  foreign  languages. 

This  fact  renders  the  scarcity  of  well-prepared  teachers  of  Latin 
especially  acute,  since,  as  Professor  A.  W.  Hodgman,  of  Ohio  State 
University,  wisely  points  out,  if  the  increasing  numbers  of  students 
of  the  next  few  years  have  to  be  taught  by  those  who  are  poorly 
prepared  to  teach  the  subject,  there  seems  to  be  grave  danger  that 
the  revival  of  interest  may  be  counterbalanced  by  poor  teaching 
and  its  value  lost. 

This  problem  of  scarcity,  especially  with  regard  to  the  near 
future,  calls  loudly  for  immediate  solution,  and  should  enlist  the 
deepest  interest  and  united  effort  of  all  who  have  the  strengthening 
of  classical  instruction  at  heart.  I  have  been  advocating  two  lines  of 
action.  First,  teachers  both  in  high  school  and  college  should  select 
those  of  their  students  who  have  shown  especial  linguistic  gifts  and 
special  interest  in  classical  study,  and  plant  in  them  the  ambition  to 
teach  the  classics.  Such  students  should  be  encouraged  in  every  way 
to  go  on  through  school  and  college,  specializing  in  Latin. 

But,  (and  this  is  my  second  point)  this  is  not  enough.  Not  only 
should  the  student  looking  forward  to  teaching  Latin  become  thor- 

[8] 


oughly  versed  in  this  language,  but  he  must  be  given  opportunity 
somewhere  in  his  undergraduate  course  to  study  the  subject  from 
the  standpoint  of  the  teacher;  he  must  find  open  to  him  one  or  more 
training  courses  in  the  teaching  of  Latin.  These  courses  the  colleges 
and  normal  schools  must  provide  through  the  Latin  departments  of 
these  institutions,  and  this,  not  only  in  the  summer  sessions,  during 
which  sessions  alone,  it  would  seem,  most  colleges  offer  such  courses, 
but  during  the  regular  sessions  of  the  college  or  normal  course  as 
well.  Such  courses,  we  are  convinced,  not  only  would  meet  a  most 
poignant  need,  but  would  vastly  enhance  the  value  of  the  department 
in  the  minds  of  students. 

Deeply  feeling  the  need  of  this,  and  desiring  to  practice  my  own 
preaching,  at  the  opening  of  the  winter  quarter  just  closing  I  offered 
to  my  freshman  and  sophomore  classes,  which  happened  to  contain 
an  unusual  number  of  bright  and  enthusiastic  classicists,  a  volunteer 
course  in  the  teaching  of  high-school  Latin,  to  extend  through  the 
winter  and  spring  quarters,  and  into  the  following  year  if  desired. 
To  my  great  gratification,  and  somewhat  to  my  surprise,  a  full  half 
of  the  two  classes,  nearly  a  third  of  the  freshmen  and  two-thirds  of 
the  sophomores,  volunteered  for  this  class.  Our  work  for  the  past 
three  months  has  concerned  itself  with  the  study  of  Caesar  from  the 
teacher's  standpoint,  and  the  working  out  of  all  difficult  points  on 
which  the  teacher  must  be  especially  clear  if  he  is  successfully  to 
teach  this  author.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  every  member  of  this 
group  is  a  subscriber  to  the  Classical  Journal,  and  is  reading  this 
from  month  to  month  with  intelligent  interest — a  habit  which  we 
should  like  to  believe  every  Latin  teacher  already  in  the  field  has 
formed. 

I  am  appealing  to  the  colleges  generally  for  information  as  to 
training  courses  in  Latin  already  offered  or  contemplated,  and  hope 
to  publish  a  list  of  these  courses  in  the  Journal  at  no  distant  date. 

The  second  editorial  (February)  described  at  length  an  experi- 
ment in  teacher-class  cooperation  in  the  study  of  the  problems  of 
enrollment  of  Latin  in  high  school  and  the  continuation  of  this  subject 
through  school  and  college.  This  investigation  was  made  in  company 
with  my  freshman  class  alone,  during  the  course  of  the  Autumn 
Quarter.  They  were  fresh  from  their  own  high-school  experiences, 
and  took  up  the  subject  with  surprising  zest.  Paper  after  paper  was 
written  by  each  of  the  members,  the  first  being  a  statement  of  their 
own  objectives  in  the  study  of  Latin  and  their  reasons  for  continuing 

[9] 


this  study  in  college.  This  was  followed  by  a  statement, from  their  own 
memory  of  high-school  students  and  from  enquiring  among  their 
present  classmates,  of  those  reasons  which  operate  to  hold  students 
from  the  study  of  Latin  or  to  bring  about  an  early  discontinuance 
of  this  study. 

In  a  third  paper  they  formulated  their  own  answers  to  these 
reasons,  and  finally  presented  practical  suggestions  from  their  own 
thought  and  experience  as  to  how  the  mortality  of  Latin  students  at 
the  end  of  the  first,  and  especially  of  the  second  year,  can  be  reduced. 
This  enquiry  contemplated  also  a  continued  interest  through  the 
third  and  fourth  years,  and  into  college  as  well. 

This  last  paper  produced  a  wealth  of  practical  suggestions,  which 
it  would  be  worth  any  teacher's  time  to  study  and,  so  far  as  circum- 
stances allow,  apply.  These  suggestions  I  have  not  space  here  to 
enumerate,  but  I  have  given  them  at  considerable  length  in  the 
editorial  to  which  I  have  referred,  and  urge  every  reader  of  this 
article  to  read  and  consider  them  with  care. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  in  passing  that  the  interest  aroused  in  these 
freshmen  themselves  by  this  enquiry  has  already  borne  fruit  in  that 
several  of  them  are  actively  interested,  through  the  Undergraduate 
Latin  Club,  in  establishing  Latin  clubs  in  the  neighboring  high  schools 
of  Chicago. 

I  have  been  so  impressed  with  the  need  of  a  united  effort  on  the 
part  of  all  teachers,  each  feeling  and  assuming  his  own  share  of 
responsibility,  that,  in  advance  of  the  report  on  the  Survey,  I  have 
sent  a  circular  letter  to  one  hundred  teachers,  enlisting  their  personal 
interest,  in  the  hope  that  a  group  of  this  sort,  working  consciously 
together  for  the  same  end,  will  prove  of  great  assistance,  not  alone 
in  the  matter  to  which  I  have  been  referring,  but  also  in  carrying 
out  the  suggestions  of  the  forthcoming  report. 

Will  not  you,  who  read  this,  join  the  One  Hundred?  Will  you 
help  in  the  solution  of  the  problems  which  we  have  been  discussing? 
Will  you  put  yourself  generally  behind  the  forward  movement  which 
the  publication  of  the  Survey's  report  will  undoubtedly  inaugurate, 
with  your  full  sympathy  and  influence? 

What  is  everybody's  business  is  nobody's  business.  Let  us  make 
this  our  business.   Let  us  not  allow  the  report  to  end  in  a  book. 


[10] 


CLASSICAL  TEACHERS  IN   ATHENS 

R.  C.  Flickinger 

Why  should  a  classical  teacher  wish  to  spend  a  few  weeks  or 
months  at  Athens?  What  has  the  American  School  of  Classical 
Studies  there  to  offer  as  attractions?  First  of  all,  there  is  the  delight- 
ful fellowship  in  a  small  group  of  congenial  people  all  devoted  to  the 
same  special  interests,  students  or  officers  in  the  School. 

Moreover,  the  Library  of  the  School,  supplemented  by  those  at 
the  British,  German,  Italian,  French,  and  Austrian  Schools,  has 
always  offered  exceptional  opportunities  for  special  reading,  and 
these  opportunities  will  become  unsurpassed  when  the  new  building 
is  completed  to  house  the  Gennadios  collection  relating  to  all  periods 
of  Greek  life,  Byzantine  and  mediaeval  as  well  as  ancient  and  modern. 
The  new  structure  was  made  possible  by  a  gift  of  $250,000  from  the 
Carnegie  Foundation  and  has  now  reached  an  advanced  stage  in  the 
process  of  erection. 

Still  again,  I  for  one  have  never  sufficiently  realized  that  Greece 
belongs  to  the  Near  East  and  the  Orient.  An  extension  of  our  travels 
into  Egypt,  Palestine,  Syria,  and  Turkey  in  Asia  and  in  Europe  has 
deepened  the  impression  which  I  at  first  gained  from  the  initial  days 
and  weeks  of  our  sojourn  in  Athens.  There  are  scores  of  points  at 
which  modern  Greek  life  seems  strange  to  us  of  the  Occident  and 
resembles  Smyrna  or  Constantinople  or  even  Cairo  or  Jerusalem. 
I  think  others  would  be  as  invigorated  by  this  contrast  of  novelty 
as  we  were. 

To  classical  teachers  I  need  not  recite  the  monuments  of 
antiquity  which  stand  in  the  city  of  Athens — the  Acropolis  and  its 
temples,  the  Propylaea,  the  Greek  and  Roman  theaters  on  its  south- 
ern slope,  the  Theseum  and  Olympieum  near  by,  the  lesser  remains 
in  every  direction.  What  Cicero  wrote  in  a  different  connection  is 
only  too  true  here:  "quocumque  ingredimur,  in  aliquam  historiam 
pedem  ponimus." 

Perhaps  the  greatest  pleasure  and  profit,  however,  came  from 
the  trips  which  the  members  of  the  School  take  at  frequent  intervals 
to  various  parts  of  the  country  by  rail  or  automobile.  The  north 
Greece   tour   takes   us   through   Thebes,   Thermopylae,   Chaeronea, 

[11] 


Chalcis,  Eretria,  Lebadeia,  Delphi,  and  a  score  of  lesser  sites  during 
a  period  of  two  weeks.  Equally  long  is  the  journey  through  the 
Peloponnesus  to  Corinth,  Argos,  Megalopolis,  Mantinea,  Pylos, 
Sparta,  Tiryns,  Mycenae,  etc.  These  two  are  taken  by  automobile, 
but  there  is  also  a  six-day  trip  to  Olympia  by  railroad  and  one-day 
visits  to  nearer  points  such  as  Marathon,  Sunium,  or  Eleusis. 

In  addition  to  the  archaeological  value  of  such  journeys,  one  of 
the  most  interesting  features,  at  least  to  me,  was  the  contact  with 
Greek  emigrants  who  have  returned  from  America.  As  our  auto 
came  down  the  zig-zag  slopes  of  the  Arcadian  mountains,  for  exam- 
ple, its  hum  could  be  heard  for  long  distances  and  consequently  the 
population  of  every  village  would  be  out  in  the  main  street  awaiting 
our  approach.  The  American  flag  fluttering  over  our  radiator  also 
announced  our  nationality  as  far  as  eye  could  see,  and  no  "hello-boy," 
as  we  got  to  calling  them,  ever  failed  to  greet  his  "fellow-country- 
men" or  air  his  hard-won  English  before  the  admiring  throng  of 
Greeks.  I  was  amazed  at  the  number  of  these  men;  no  hamlet  was  so 
small  as  not  to  have  at  least  one,  and  they  frequently  hailed  us  from 
the  plowing  in  the  fields  or  from  the  mules  on  which  they  were  riding 
along  the  road.  And  sometimes  they  surprised  us  by  the  knowledge 
of  things  American  which  they  displayed.  For  example,  in  one  vil- 
lage a  "hello-boy"  after  the  introductory  exchange  of  greetings,  ex- 
claimed: "Say!  You  have  only  forty-six  stars  in  your  flag,  and  you 
ought  to  have  forty-eight."  It  was  only  too  true!  Our  flag  was  an 
old  one  which  no  longer  shone  with  the  proper  number  of  stars,  but 
no  one  in  that  group  of  "highly  educated"  people  had  noticed  the 
fact. 

Perhaps  on  some  other  occasion  I  shall  have  an  opportunity  of 
telling  you  about  other  sayings  of  Greek  "hello-boys"  and  other 
interesting  features  of  the  American  school  trips  through  Greece. 


[12] 


THE  LATIN  EXHIBIT  AT  URBANA* 

Rachel  L.  Sargent 

Just  at  this  season  of  the  year  when  the  chief  difficulties  of 
syntax  in  Caesar,  Cicero,  and  Vergil  have  been  mastered  and  when 
the  Freshman  class,  surfeited  with  declensions  and  conjugations,  is 
dismayed  at  the  dismal  prospect  of  memorizing  the  forms  of  the 
subjunctive  mood,  it  may  be  an  opportune  time  to  remind  the  teach- 
ers of  Latin  that  now  the  interest  of  the  pupils  may  be  stimulated 
by  encouraging  them  to  make  a  permanent  contribution  to  the 
material  equipment  of  their  own  Latin  department. 

Last  November,  the  Classics  section  of  the  State  Teachers'  Con- 
ference was  given  the  privilege  of  examining  a  wealth  of  supplemen- 
tary material,  directly  useful  for  Latin  classes,  which  had  been 
assembled  in  the  Congregational  Church  parlors  through  the  efforts 
of  Effie  Case  of  La  Grange  High  School  and  Rachel  L.  Sargent 
of  the  University  High  School  assisted  by  Amy  Beach  of  Champaign 
High  School.  Each  contributing  school  was  allotted  a  definite  space 
for  its  exhibit.  Beneath  placards  which  designated  Belleville,  Cham- 
paign, Clinton,  Decatur,  La  Grange,  Mason  City,  New  Trier,  Spring- 
field, and  University  High  Schools,  as  well  as  the  Teacher's  Service 
Bureau,  there  was  arranged  a  pleasing  variety  of  games,  songs,  Latin 
records  for  Victrola,  books  for  reference,  statuettes,  pictures,  besides 
the  notebooks,  vocabulary  cards,  posters,  and  a  few  models  made  by 
students  themselves.  On  a  table  in  the  center  of  the  room  there  were 
arranged  for  distribution  reports  from  the  Classical  Investigation 
now  in  progress  and  mimeographed  lists  of  objects  in  the  University's 
Classical  Museum  of  especial  value  for  the  background  of  High 
School  Latin.  The  latter,  compiled  by  Sybil  Stonecipher,  were 
grouped  under  the  captions:  Objects  of  Interest  for  Freshman  Latin, 
for  Caesar,  for  Cicero,  for  Vergil,  and  for  Private  Life  of  the  Romans. 


*Note:  This  article  and  the  two  following  describe  the  attempt  that  was  made  at  the  High 
School  Conference  held  November,  1923,  at  the  University  of  Illinois  to  arouse  interest  among 
the  teachers  of  the  state  in  preparing  classroom  equipment  of  such  a  kind  as  to  help  make  the  life 
of  the  Romans  more  real  to  the  pupils.  In  order  that  this  movement  may  be  carried  on  success- 
fully, the  teachers  of  Latin  in  all  the  high  schools  of  the  state  are  urged  to  bring  to  the  Conference 
which  will  be  held  at  Urbana  next  November  at  least  one  model,  chart,  or  scrap  book  made  by 
the  pupils  of  their  schools,  marking  the  same  with  card  to  show  what  school  has  loaned  it. — 
Effie  Case,    Chairman  of  Program   Committee,    Lyons   Township    High   School,   La  Grange. 

[13] 


Among  the  hundreds  who  visited  the  room,  it  was  gratifying  to 
observe  that  many  teachers  spent  considerable  time  in  making  out  a 
bibliography  or  in  noting  down  what  objects  particularly  interested 
them.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  most  of  these,  stimulated  by  the  sight 
of  what  others  have  found  useful  in  enlivening  and  enriching  their 
class  rooms,  have  already  set  to  work  to  increase  their  supplementary 
material.  The  question  is  a  serious  one,  of  course,  as  to  how  much 
time  and  energy  a  busy  teacher  and  still  busier  students  may  safely 
devote  to  such  an  extra-curriculum  activity.  Better  that  no  time 
were  spent,  in  class  or  outside,  for  this  purpose  than  that  pupils 
should  leave  our  classes  with  a  keen  interest  and  marked  efficiency 
in  drawing,  modelling,  singing,  and  playing  games  but  with  no  inter- 
est or  efficiency  in  reading  the  message  of  the  Latin  authors.  Yet  if 
each  teacher  of  Latin  in  the  state  would  adopt  some  plan  whereby 
she  may  systematically,  through  the  efforts  it  may  be  of  an  enthu- 
siastic class  or  Latin  club  or  through  the  generosity  of  the  school 
board,  make  or  purchase  each  year  one  or  two  treasures  for  her 
Latin  Department  the  danger  of  taking  too  much  time  away  from 
class  work  will  be  obviated.  These  treasures  might  be  as  ambitious 
attempts  as  a  set  of  costumes  for  use  in  Latin  plays,  a  group  of  dolls 
modelled  and  dressed  to  illustrate  a  Roman  family,  vocabulary 
cards,  or  models,  maps,  posters  all  made,  if  possible,  with  the  co- 
operation of  the  manual  training,  art,  or  home  economic  classes  or 
they  might  involve  only  the  purchase  of  a  picture,  set  of  games  and 
song  books  to  be  used  on  special  occasions  or  a  bust  of  some  dis- 
tinguished Roman.  Those  of  us  who  have  been  in  the  habit  of  fol- 
lowing such  a  plan,  year  by  year,  can  assure  any  teacher  that  the 
fine  department  spirit  resulting  from  a  cooperative  enterprise,  aside 
from  the  constant  practical  use  to  which  the  possessions  are  put,  will 
more  than  repay  for  the  few  hours  of  her  time  required  for  planning 
and  supervising  the  outside  work.  With  the  assistance  of  the  Teach- 
er's Service  Bureau  now  at  our  disposal  and  the  experience  of  having 
seen  and  handled  the  materials  gathered  by  a  few  schools,  it  would 
be  surprising  if,  when  the  next  call  comes  for  an  exhibit,  there  will 
not  be  a  longer  list  of  available  material  representing  a  larger  number 
of  schools  from  which  a  selection  may  be  made. 


The  two  features  of  last  November's  exhibit  which  attracted  the 
most  atteniton  were  first,  the  model  of  the  Roman  house  complete 


[14] 


in  every  detail,  constructed  by  the  Latin  classes  of  Springfield  High 
School,  and  second,  the  collection  of  approximately  one  hundred 
drawings  made  by  Latin  students  at  Mason  City  High  School,  one 
set  to  illustrate  Caesar's  campaigns  and  the  other,  the  practical  value 
of  Latin.  I  am  sure  that  every  teacher  who  saw  these  displays,  as 
well  as  those  who  did  not,  will  be  glad  to  read  the  facts  which  Ethel 
J.  Luke  of  Springfield  and  Glenna  D.  Thompson  of  Mason  City 
wrote  me  in  reply  to  my  questions  about  their  actual  procedure  in 
projects  of  such  magnitude. 


[15] 


Fig.  1.    Model  of  Roman  House,  Constructed  by  Latin  Classes 
of  Springfield  High  School 


DESCRIPTION  OF  A  ROMAN  HOUSE 

Ethel  J.  Luke 

For  convenience  the  house  was  constructed  in  two  sections.  The 
front  section  is  36  x  30  inches;  the  rear  section  is  36  x  27  inches, 
inside  measurement,  11  inches  high.  The  frame  was  made  by  the 
Manual  Training  Department  of  little  timbers  about  a  half-inch 
square.  This  was  made  very  firm  and  true,  so  that  there  might  be  no 
difficulty  in  covering  it  neatly  with  very  heavy  quality  of  boards,  the 
sort  used  for  binding  books.  These  were  ordered  for  me  by  the  Print- 
ing Department,  which  also  measured  and  cut  the  material  ready  to  be 
tacked  on  with  very  slender  nails  with  inconspicuous  heads.  There 
is  only  one  outside  opening  into  the  house,  into  the  vestibulum,  which 
is  about  six  and  one-half  inches  square. 

The  rear  section  is  placed  right  against  the  front  section  in  such 
a  way  that  the  walls  of  the  rear  project  three  inches  on  each  side. 
(Fig.  1.)  There  is  an  opening  through  from  front  door  to  rear  wall, 
affording  quite  a  vista  (64  inches  to  be  exact,  Fig.  2).  The  opening 
between  front  and  rear  sections  (where  they  join)  is  thirteen  and 
one-half  inches;  the  width  of  the  "fauces"  is  two  and  one-half  inches, 
its  length  is  six  inches.  All  measurements  given  are  inside  measures. 
A  very  heavy  piece  of  beaver  board  was  nailed  underneath  the  frame 
of  each  section  to  make  a  firm  flooring.  I  laid  a  floor  in  the  vesti- 
bulum and  also  in  the  rear  of  the  atrium,  so  that  these  two  areas  are 
a  half-inch  higher  than  the  floor  of  the  atrium  proper.  The  floor  of 
the  atrium  proper  (22%  x  19%  in.)  is  covered  with  heavy  drawing 
paper,  laid  off  in  black  and  white  to  represent  a  tiled  floor,  as  is  also 
the  little  raised  platform  which  is  13  %  x  6%  in.,  and  the  center  of 
the  peristylium,  a  space  about  13  x  18  inches.  This  tiled  floor  is 
made  in  three  different  patterns,  and  is  quite  effective. 

Around  the  edge  of  the  peristylium,  between  the  edge  of  the 
tiling  and  the  little  rooms,  is  grass  made  by  dying  sawdust  with  one 
of  the  common  little  packets  of  green  dye.  This  should  be  put  on 
rather  thick.  In  my  house  this  grass-plot  is  about  five  inches  wide. 
Around  this  tiled  center  there  are  little  pillars  (Doric),  sixteen  in 
number,  7  in.  high,  %  in.  in  diameter,  with  little  squares  of  thin 
wood  tacked  on  each  end  to  represent  base  and  capitol.    These  are 

[17] 


Fig.  2.   View  of  Roman  House  from  Front  Door,  Showing  Vista 


simply  set  up,  not  fastened  in  any  way  to  the  floor.  I  tried  putting 
little  connecting  timbers  across  to  connect  these  pillars,  but  found 
they  did  not  look  well.  The  pillars  are  arranged  so  there  are  four 
at  the  ends  and  six  along  the  sides  of  the  tiled  floor,  with  the  grass 
coming  right  up  to  the  edge  of  them.  In  the  center  of  this  tiled  space 
is  a  little  fountain  (a  small  round  mirror  with  an  edge  formed  of 
modeling  clay)  from  the  center  of  which  rises  a  most  realistic  lion's 
head  on  a  supporting  base,  with  even  more  realistic  water  spouting 
from  its  mouth.  The  water  is  silver  Christmas  tree  tinsel,  the  stringy 
sort.  In  the  center  of  the  atrium  is  the  compluvium,  made  by  mould- 
ing paraffin,  about  an  inch  thick,  in  an  aluminum  baking  pan  8%  x 
4y2  inches.  Use  a  pan  with  curved  edges  at  bottom  and  rounded 
corners,  so  that  it  may  better  represent  a  polished  marble  rim.  A  mir- 
ror from  Woolworth's  was  cut  7%  x  3%  in.   Then  the  paraffin  was 


[18] 


very  carefully  hollowed  out  so  as  to  set  this  mirror  down  into  it,  about 
Y4  inch  below  the  surface.  On  this  mirror  are  three  little  swans  and  a 
tiny  Roman  galley,  whittled  from  wood,  with  stern  and  prow  cov- 
ered with  metal  foil,  a  diminutive  sail,  and  oars  (metal  victrola 
needles  stuck  in  the  ship's  sides),  which  made  it  possible  for  the  ship 
to  stand  straight  on  the  water.  A  small  celluloid  boy  doll  standing 
at  the  edge  is  sailing  the  ship. 

The  large  room  to  the  left  of  the  vestibulum  is  the  janitor's; 
that  on  the  right,  with  no  entrance  to  the  house  proper,  is  "Taberna 
Marci,"  with  a  projecting  counter  for  the  display  of  merchandise. 

The  inner  walls  are  made  of  the  same  heavy  book-cardboard  as 
the  outer  walls.  The  outside  of  the  house  is  painted  dull  gray,  the 
walls  of  the  atrium  a  warmer,  with  panels  and  borders  (meandering), 
in  which  are  touches  of  wisteria  and  gold.  The  walls  of  the  peristy- 
lium  are  of  Pompeian  red,  with  panel  effects  and  borders.  The  cur- 
tains are  all  of  silk,  those  in  the  atrium  of  dark  wisteria  canton  crepe; 
those  in  the  peristylium  of  old  gold  rajah.  I  tacked  these  curtains 
to  the  upper  framework  of  the  house,  then  tacked  over  the  top  of  all 
the  portieres  strips  of  the  cardboard  painted  and  bordered  as  described 
above.  These  strips  are  almost  three  inches  wide.  I  decided  that  it 
looked  better  to  leave  all  the  portieres  in  the  atrium  hanging  straight. 
The  only  ones  draped  back  are  those  between  the  atrium  and  peristy- 
lium (These  are  double,  wisteria  on  one  side  and  old-gold  on  the 
other.)  and  those  of  the  library  and  dining-room.  Two  girls  who  are 
art  students  modeled  eight  or  ten  little  statues  of  plasticine,  allowed 
them  to  dry  for  a  week  or  two,  and  then  treated  them  to  several  coats 
of  white  alabastine. 

One  of  these,  The  Fleeing  Nymph,  stands  on  the  little  raised 
platform  near  the  altar,  on  which  are  Lares  and  Penates,  carved 
most  skillfully  from  ivory  soap  by  a  clever  boy.  The  little  altar  was 
made  of  wood,  carved  a  little  and  painted  white,  with  only  a  sugges- 
tion of  gold  in  the  grooves  of  the  carving.  In  the  vestibulum  is  the 
familiar  "Cave  Canem,"  done  in  bright  blue  to  match  the  walls  of  the 
vestibulum,  with  a  few  gold  stars  in  the  tiling.  One  patient  boy, 
assisted  by  his  patient  mother,  made  six  Roman  chairs,  also  two  tiny 
box-like  stools,  on  one  of  which  sits  the  Domina  holding  her  distaff. 
The  strong  box  of  the  master  is  in  a  little  room  near  the  altar.  All 
the  pillars  are  twined  with  very  dainty  feathery  green,  with  a  little 
flower  here  and  there.  In  the  kitchen  is  a  little  stove  made  of  heavy 
cardboard,    painted    a   dull    color,    patterned   from    pictures    in    the 

[19] 


Classical  Dictionary  or  Roman  Life,  as  were  all  the  equipment,  as 
far  as  possible.  Little  beds  were  also  made  of  heavy  cardboard.  In 
the  library  are  the  usual  scrolls  in  a  tiny  set  of  shelves  like  pigeon- 
holes. The  triclinium,  etc.,  were  made  of  cardboard,  later  covered 
with  plasticine. 

The  couch  of  the  master  and  mistress,  a  low  affair  made  by 
covering  a  pasteboard  box  of.  proper  dimensions  with  a  rich  striped 
silk,  stands  at  the  rear  of  the  atrium,  between  the  compluvium  and 
the  little  raised  part.  The  statuary  is  really  the  making  of  the  whole 
thing.  I  placed  the  Discobulus  at  the  rear  of  the  peristylium  so  that 
it  was  in  the  exact  center,  on  a  line  with  the  center  of  the  altar  and 
the  compluvium,  so  that  one  sitting  and  looking  through  the  door 
has  a  really  beautiful  vista,  over  the  compluvium  and  the  altar  with 
its  little  images,  through  the  wreathed  pillars,  back  to  the  red  rear 
wall,  against  which  the  Discobulus  stands.  I  almost  forgot  to  say 
that  I  decided  at  the  last  minute  to  lay  a  little  "timber"  about  1% 
inches  wide  and  13%  inches  long  between  the  atrium  and  the  peristy- 
lium, resting  just  on  the  edge  of  the  aforesaid  little  platform.  This 
was  painted  pale  gray  (water  color,  bought  in  small  jars),  as  was  all 
the  visible  woodwork.  On  this  balustrade  are  two  tiny  urns  made  of 
moulding  clay,  in  which  little  green  shrubs  grow  (also  from  Wool- 
worth's).  Other  larger  shrubs  are  in  two  very  small  pots  just  inside 
the  atrium,  by  the  vestibulum,  while  two  other  pots  are  in  the  peristy- 
lium, with  blooming  shrubs  in  them.  The  kitchen  is  completely 
equipped  with  utensils  modeled  from  plasticine.  In  the  storeroom 
are  supplies  in  sacks,  etc.  The  little  kitchen  garden  is  covered  with 
grass  and  boasts  a  hen,  rooster,  goat,  etc.  On  a  small  pedestal  near 
the  altar  is  a  statue,  or  rather  a  bust  of  an  ancestor,  carved  from 
chalk.  The  other  statues  in  my  house,  in  addition  to  the  Discobulus, 
are  Neptune  with  his  trident,  Mercury,  Mars,  a  Fleeing  Nymph,  a 
Roman  Warrior  with  his  spear,  and  several  which  boast  no  names. 


[20] 


MASON  CITY  ILLUSTRATIVE  DRAWINGS 

Glenna  D.  Thompson 

Unfortunately  for  the  Classics,  the  community  in  which  I  first 
taught  was  opposed  to  the  so-called  "dead  languages"  and,  previous 
to  my  coming,  Latin  had  been  eliminated  from  the  high-school  course. 
In  order  to  reinstate  it  to  its  rightful  place,  something  had  to  be  done 
and  done  quickly. 

For  the  first  few  weeks  of  school  every  effort  was  put  forth  to 
show  and  illustrate  the  value  of  Latin  until  finally  the  majority  of 
the  pupils  were  won  over.  Then  it  remained  to  bring  the  community 
to  the  same  point  of  view.  The  pupils  had  been  keeping  notebooks 
in  which  they  had  drawn  original  pictures  showing  the  value  of  Latin 
in  its  various  applications.  Some  of  the  illustrations  were  so  good 
that  it  was  decided  to  put  them  on  uniform  drawing  cardboards, 
making  them  about  five  times  their  first  size.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  none  of  these  pupils  had  ever  had  an  art  or  drawing  lesson,  and 
therefore  the  work  shown  upon  the  posters  was  the  result  of  such 
natural  ability  as  they  possessed,  a  fact  which,  by  the  way,  made 
some  of  the  achievements  of  double  value  to  us,  knowing  as  we  did, 
the  kind  of  work  ordinarily  presented  by  these  boys  and  girls. 

Since  some  very  original  posters  were  handed  in  to  me,  showing 
even  more  uses  of  Latin  than  had  been  suggested  to  the  class,  it  was 
decided  that  this  work  was  an  important  one,  and  as  a  result,  last 
year  four  posters  were  required  from  each  pupil.  As  a  compensation 
one-fourth  of  his  or  her  grade  was  determined  by  the  grade  given 
the  posters.  If  two  pupils  worked  up  posters  under  the  same  heading 
or  on  the  same  idea,  each  one  was  compelled  to  procure  different 
material  for  the  illustration.  Altogether  last  year  we  had  seventy- 
four  different  posters.  The  first-year  classes  illustrated  the  value  of 
Latin  in  understanding  English  literature,  art,  music,  and  numerous 
scientific  terms;  in  spelling  English  words;  in  interpreting  seals  and 
mottoes;  in  learning  Spanish,  Italian,  and  French;  in  becoming  ac- 
quainted with  classical  characters;  in  recognizing  the  meaning  of  the 
names  of  almost  every  modern  scientific  invention;  in  understanding 
many  common  abbreviations  used  in  English;  in  appreciating  the 
technique   and  spirit  of  many   poems   and   much   of  our   prose;   in 

[21] 


tracing  the  origin  of  many  of  our  decorative  designs  and  pictures; 
and  in  other  similar  ways.  The  Caesar  classes  (we  have  only  two 
years  of  Latin)  drew  maps  of  every  battle  described  in  the  first  five 
books  of  Caesar,  made  plans  of  Roman  camps,  and  drew  pictures  of 
almost  every  instrument  of  warfare,  whether  offensive  or  defensive. 
There  were  drawings  of  vineae,  aggeres,  testitudines,  valla,  fossae, 
turres  ambulatoria,  plutei;  there  was  a  front  view,  a  side  view,  an 
aeroplane  view,  and  a  cross  section  of  Caesar's  bridge,  with  a  repre- 
sentation of  a  pile  driver  used  in  the  construction  of  this  bridge; 
there  were  pictures  of  the  various  standards  and  insignia  of  the 
Roman  army,  of  their  musical  instruments,  carts,  grist  mills,  etc. 
Let  it  be  said  that  the  more  illustrations  that  can  be  made,  the  more 
interest  will  be  instilled  in  the  class. 

As  to  the  drawing  cardboard  which  was  used  in  making  these 
charts,  a  good  grade  can  be  procured  in  single  sheets  of  about  14  x  21 
inches  for  five  cents  each,  and  this  is  better  than  the  cheaper  glazed 
kind  as  it  will  take  ink  without  allowing  it  to  spread. 

These  posters  have  been  exhibited  at  the  Parent-Teachers'  meet- 
ings and  at  the  local  Fair,  and  gradually  the  community  is  beginning 
to  see  the  value  of  a  classical  education. 


[22] 


MISCELLANEOUS 

The  following  dialogue  written  by  Olive  Sutherland,  of  Eastern 
High  School,  Detroit,  Michigan,  was  first  published  in  the  Classical 
Journal,  January,  1912: 

A  Dialogue:   The  Schoolboy's  Dream 

(A  boy  is  seated  at  study  with  a  copy  of  Caesar  before  him.) 
Boy   (sleepily)  :    "Cum  esset  Caesar — Caesar — in  citeriore  Gallia,   ita — ita — uti 
supra  demonstravimus  crebri  ad  eum  ru-rumores  affere — afferebantur — "   (head  falls 
on  book). 

(Enter  ghost  of  Caesar.    Boy  stirs  in  sleep — stretches — becomes  aware 
of  the  apparition.) 

Boy:    Great  Caesar's  ghost,  what's  that? 

Caesar:    Vocasne  me? 

Boy  (aside) :  That  sounds  like  Latin.  Wonder  who  he  is.  (Aloud)  Talk  Eng- 
lish— this  isn't  school.  Why  don't  you  say  something?  (Becoming  frightened)  Great 
Caesar!    Who  are  you  any  way? 

Caesar:  Dixisti.  Sum  Caesar  quern  omnis  orbis  terrarum  maximum  Romanum 
appellavit. 

Boy:  "Sum  Caesar" — wait  a  minute.  Oh!  that's  easy — "I  am  Caesar."  But 
say,  you  don't  mean  it,  do  you?  You're  not  really  Caesar,  the  Caesar  who  wrote 
this  book?    Where  have  you  been  all  this  time? 

Caesar:    In  inferiore  terra  in  hibernis. 

Boy  (making  a  dash  for  his  book) :  "In  citeriore  Gallia  in  hibernis" — Say,  Mr. 
Caesar,  you  have  two  words  wrong,  and  you  ought  to  know,  since  you  wrote  it. 

Caesar  (paying  no  attention  to  the  boy's  remark) :  Cum  in  inferiore  terra  essem 
crebri  ad  me  rumores  afferebantur  litterisque  item  magistrorum  certior  fiebam  omnes 
pueros  puellasque  contra  meos  commentarios  coniurare  equosque  inter  se  dare. 

Boy:  Oh,  now  I've  caught  on!  You  didn't  fool  me  this  time.  If  you'd  talk 
book  language  all  the  time  I'd  know  what  you  are  driving  at,  provided  you  didn't 
use  the  words  in  chapter  two,  for  I  haven't  looked  up  those  words  yet;  so  of  course 
I  don't  know  them.  But  I  know  what  you  said  this  time  all  right.  You  said  (speak- 
ing slowly  and  from  time  to  time  referring  to  the  book),  "While  I  was  in  the  lower 
world  frequent  rumors  were  brought  to  me,  and  I  was  also  informed  by  the  letters 
of  the  teachers,  that  all  the  boys  and  girls  were  conspiring  against  my  commentaries 
and  were  exchanging  horses" — horses — horses — ha,  ha! — we  don't  call  them  horses; 
we  call  them  "ponies."  But  I  haven't  got  one,  honestly  I  haven't  (rises  from  his 
chair  in  his  excitement). 

Caesar:    Sit — (Boy  falls  back  into  his  chair  with  a  thud). 

Caesar: — mihi  negotium  ut  de  his  rebus  cognoscam. 

Boy  (aside) :  I  thought  that  was  an  English  word — it  came  so  sudden  and 
emphatic  like. 

Caesar:    Sis — 

Boy  (weakly):   Yes,  sir. 

Caesar: — tu  auxilio  mihi. 

[23] 


Boy  (■wildly)  :  This  is  the  most  confusing  conversation.  My  head  fairly  swims. 
One  minute  I  hear  a  real  sensible  English  word,  then  the  next  minute  some  of  that 
tiresome  old  Latin  is  tacked  on  to  it  so  that  it  might  be  heathen  Chinese  for  all  I 
know  about  it. 

Caesar:  I  take  mercy  upon  you.  If  you  cannot  speak  my  language  I  shall 
oblige  you  by  speaking  yours.  Now,  my  lad,  come  tell  me — what  do  you  think  of 
my  conquests  in  Gaul,  my  diplomacy,  my  generalship,  my — 

Boy:  I  don't  know  anything  about  those  things.  I  don't  have  time  to  look 
them  up.  But  I'll  tell  you  one  thing — I  hate  this  old  book  of  yours.  It  wouldn't 
be  so  bad  if  it  had  any  sense  to  it,  but  what's  the  use  of  all  those  ablatives,  datives, 
subjunctives,  purpose  clauses,  indirect  questions,  infinitives  with  accusatives  for 
subjects,  all  jumbled  up  together  in  such  a  crazy  patchwork  quilt  that  it  gets  upon 
a  fellow's  nerves?  Say,  where  could  a  fellow  find  out  about  those  conquests  of  yours? 
I  think  I  would  like  to  know  about  them. 

Caesar:  In  the  manner  of  Cicero,  my  fellow-country-man,  I  could  exclaim 
"0  temporal  0  mores!  Haec  magistri  intellegunt.  Discipuli  haec  vident.  Error 
tamen   vivit,"   and    add    with    feeling,    "0    miseri    commentarii,    0   miserior    Caesar, 

0  miserrimus  puer."  You  read  and  yet  you  do  not  read,  for  you  read  without  com- 
prehending. You  make  of  my  work  which  I  had  thought  would  speak  to  men  of 
plans  carefully  formed,  of  leadership  unrivaled,  of  boundless  ambition  and  growing 
achievement,  of  fears  and  hopes  and  living  deeds,  a  complicated  puzzle  of  words  and 
phrases  which  at  the  best  but  pleases  you  to  solve,  yet  lacking  soul,  cold  and  dead. 

Boy:  All  that  may  be  very  true,  but  a  fellow  can't  do  everything.  I  hate  Latin 
anyway.  It's  too  hard — takes  too  long  to  learn.  I'm  going  to  drop  it  next  semester. 
Father  said  I  might. 

Caesar:  All  failure  is  divided  into  three  parts,  one  of  which  the  "Gay-Guy" 
possesses,  the  second  the  "I'11-quit-anians,"  the  third  those  who  in  their  own  language 
are  called  ''Cant's,"  but  in  ours  "Dulls."  Of  all  these  the  Dulls  are  the  bravest 
because  they  are  the  farthest  away  from  the  hope  and  inspiration  of  success.  To 
which  tribe,  young  man,  do  you  belong?  Or  do  you  not  scorn  to  be  counted  among 
these  barbarians  and  prefer  to  claim  citizenship  in  the  great  city  of  Victory,  whose 
brave  warriors  have  subdued  all  the  world  by  living  up  to  the  martial  watchword, 
"Veni,  vidi,  vici?"    Answer  me. 

Boy:    For  a  long  time,  O  Caesar,  I  have  been  living  in  the  land  of  Failure,  but 

1  guess  I  am  tired  of  it  now.  I  don't  like  the  ways  and  customs  of  the  folks  that 
live  there;  so  I'm  going  back  to  my  native  city  just  as  soon  as  I  can,  and  I  hope 
I  may  some  time  say  as  you  have  said,  "I  came,  I  saw,  I  conquered."  But  I'm  too 
sleepy  now,  Mr.  Caesar.  I'll  have  to  wait  till  tomorrow  morning  (head  drops  on 
desk). 

Caesar:    Bene  dixisti,  puer  fortissime.    Vale,  mi  amice,  vale.    (Exit  Caesar.) 
Boy:    What  a  funny  dream,   I   do  declare!    But  I   guess  after  all   I   did  get  a 
glimmer  of  the  truth.    Anyway,   I   don't   think   I'll   drop  Latin  yet.     (Looks  at   his 
watch.)    Eleven  o'clock!    Well,  no  wonder  I'm  tired — the  Land  of  Nod  for  me! 
[Written  for  the  Roman  Senate,  Eastern  High  School.] 

Books  of  Interest  to  Caesar  Classes 

Two  excellent  books  for  the  use  of  Caesar  classes  are  Caesar's 
"Conquest  of  Gaul"  by  Rice  Holmes,  published  by  the  Oxford  Uni- 
versity Press,  whose  American  Branch  is  located  at  35  West  32nd 
St.,  New  York,  and  "Warfare  by  Land  and  Sea"  by  Eugene  S.  Mc- 

[24] 


Cartney,  published   by  Marshall  Jones   and   Co.,  212    Summer   St., 
Boston,  Mass.    The  price  of  the  former  is  $8.35,  of  the  latter  $1.50. 

Mr.  Holmes  has  given  us  one  of  the  most  dramatic  and  thrilling 
explanatory  narratives  of  Caesar's  account  of  his  Conquest  of  Gaul 
that  could  be  imagined.  It  holds  the  members  of  a  class  spell-bound 
if  read  to  them  after  they  have  translated  such  stories  as  the  Battle 
with  the  Nervii,  or  the  Siege  of  Avaricum,  or  the  Blockade  of  Alesia. 
The  author  himself  says  in  his  preface,  "Eleven  years  ago  it  occurred 
to  me  that  an  English  narrative  of  Caesar's  Conquest  of  Gaul  might 
help  to  relieve  the  weariness  of  the  schoolboys  whose  lot  it  is  to 
flounder,  in  ceaseless  conflict  with  the  ablative  absolute,  through  the 
pages  of  the  Commentaries;  might  help  them  to  realize  that  those 
pages  were  not  written  for  the  purpose  of  inflicting  mental  torture, 
but  were  the  story  of  events  which  did  really  happen,  and  many  of 
which  rival  in  interest  the  exploits  of  Cortes  or  of  Give." 

Mr.  McCartney's  book,  which  is  a  very  recent  contribution  to 
our  knowledge  of  military  history,  shows  in  a  most  unusual  and  effec- 
tive way  the  close  connection  between  ancient  and  modern  strategy 
and  tactics.  The  following  headings  of  the  fifteen  chapters  will  help 
to  indicate  the  scope  of  the  book,  and  the  quotation  concerning  the 
language  of  the  Romans  will  give  an  idea  of  its  style. 
I.    Permanency  of  Ancient  Contributions. 

II.    The  Evolution  of  Generalship. 

III.  The  Phalanx  and  the  Legion. 

IV.  Army  Organization:    The  Growth  of  Its  Branches. 
V.    Shock  and  Fire:    The  Development  of  Artillery. 

VI.    Greek  Contributions  to  Tactics  and  Strategy. 
VII.    Greek  Cavalry. 
VIII.    The  Marshall  Spirit  of  Rome. 
IX.    Roman  Drill  and  Discipline. 
X.    The  Spade  in  the  Roman  Army. 
XL    Roman  Contributions  to  Tactics  and  Strategy. 
XII.    Roman  Cavalry. 

XIII.  Ancient  and  Modern  Analogies. 

XIV.  Naval  Indebtedness. 
XV.    Conclusion. 

THE    LANGUAGE    OF   THE   ROMANS 

The  very  language  of  the  Romans  reflects  their  martial  character.  Quintilian 
harps  upon  the  fact  that  Caesar  spoke  in  the  same  manner  that  he  fought.  His 
diction  was  that  of  a  military  man.    The  organization  of  an  involved  Latin  sentence, 

[25] 


with  its  respect  for  rank  and  superiority,  is  military  in  character.  An  ''unmistakable 
note  of  discipline  and  subordination  manifests  itself  in  the  orderly  way  in  which  the 
Romans  carry  out  the  sequence  of  their  tenses,  all  dependent  tenses  being  subordi- 
nated to  the  main  clause;  and  it  again  comes  out  in  the  preference  shown  by  Latin 
for  dependent  speech,  in  which  sentence  after  sentence,  and  clause  after  clause,  are 
set  under  the  strict  regime  of  a  single  governing  verb,  as  soldiers  under  that  of  a 
general Just  as  soldiers  in  a  regiment  keep  their  eyes  fixed  on  their  com- 
mander, all  the  pronouns  in  indirect  discourse  which  have  reference  to  the  speaker, 
look  back  to  him." 

The  Latin  marshals  its  sentences  like  soldiers  and  "periods  succeed  each  other 
with  dignity  and  in  well-marked  cadence — spirited  and  irresistible  like  the  Roman 
legionary.  Their  entire  colouring  recalls  to  us  the  picture  of  his  weather-beaten  face, 
and  their  stately  march  reminds  us  of  his  proud  and  masterful  bearing.  In  fact. 
this  well-matched  pair,  warrior  and  language,  have  stepped  forth  from  their  home 
in  full  consciousness  of  victory,  and  have  overcome  the  world  between  them." 

Word  Ancestry* 

In  Latin  there  are  three  words  which  mean  "people,"  and  from 
all  of  them  come  English  words.  "Populus"  means  the  people  gen- 
erally, including  all  classes  of  them.  "Plebs"  means  the  common 
people  as  distinguished  from  the  patricians,  or  aristocrats.  "Vulgus" 
means  the  lower  classes,  the  rabble.  "Vulgus"  was  a  term  of  con- 
tempt. "Plebs"  was  not  necessarily  so,  though  in  later  times  it  was 
sometimes  thus  used,  becoming  almost  the  same  in  meaning  as 
"vulgus." 

It  will  readily  be  seen  that  from  "populus"  we  get  such  words 
as  "popular,"  "population,"  "depopulate,"  and  even  "people"  itself. 
But  we  also  get  "public,"  belonging  to  the  people.  This  comes  from 
the  Latin  "publicus,"  which  in  turn  comes  from  "populus"  through 
a  series  of  gradual  changes,  thus:  "populicus,"  "poplicus,"  "poblicus," 
"publicus."  "Publicare"  means  "to  make  public,"  and  from  this  come 
our  words  "publication"  and  "publish." 

It  is  easy  to  see  in  "vulgus"  the  source  of  our  word  "vulgar," 
belonging  to  the  rabble,  coarse,  unrefined.  "Divulge"  might  not  so 
readily  occur  to  one  as  connected  with  "vulgus,"  but  it  means  "to 
make  known,  to  spread  among  the  people" — meaning  in  this  case,  of 
course,  not  the  rabble,  but  the  people  generally. 

From  "plebs"  we  have  "plebeian,"  which  is  sometimes  but  not 
always  synonymous  with  "vulgar."  "Vulgar"  almost  always  suggests 
contempt;  "plebeian"  does  not  suggest  it  so  strongly,  if  at  all.  We 
should  never  accuse  a  person  of  using  plebeian  language. 


'By  Willis  A.   Ellis,  published   in   the   Chicago   Daily  News. 

[26] 


The  word  "plebiscite"  was  brought  into  rather  common  use  by 
the  world  war.  The  people  of  certain  disputed  territories  were  allowed 
to  choose  by  vote  their  allegiance  to  one  or  another  newly  formed 
nation.  This  vote  was  called  a  plebiscite,  which  is  directly  from  the 
Latin  "plebiscitum,"  a  decree  of  the  people. 

The  Lads  of  Liege* 

("Horum  omnium  fortissimi  sunt  Belgae."— Caesar's  "Commentaries") 

The  lads  of  Liege,  beyond  our  eyes 
They  lie  where  beauty's  laurels  be— 
With  lads  of  old  Thermopylae, 

Who  stayed  the  storming  Persians. 

The  lads  of  Liege,  on  glory's  field 
They  clasp  the  hands  of  Roland's  men, 
Who  lonely  faced  the  Saracen 
Meeting  the  dark  invasion. 

The  lads — the  deathless  lads  of  Liege, 
They  blazon  through  our  living  world 
Their  land — the  little  land  that  hurled 
Olympian   defiance. 

"Now  make  us  room,  now  let  us  pass; 
Our  monarch  suffers  no  delay. 
To  stand  in  mighty  Caesar's  way 
Beseems  not  Lilliputians." 

"We  make  no  room;  you  shall  not  pass, 
For  freedom  says  your  monarch  nay! 
And  we  have  stood  in  Caesar's  way 
Through  freedom's  generations. 

"And  here  we  stand  till  freedom  fall 
And  Caesar  cry,  ere  we  succumb, 
Once  more  his  horum  omnium 
Fortissimi  sunt  Belgae" 

The  monarch  roars  an  iron  laugh 
And  cries  on  God  to  man  his  guns; 
But  Belgian  mothers  bore  them  sons 
Who  man  the  souls  within  them: 

They  bar  his  path,  they  hold  their  pass, 
They  blaze  in  glory  of  the  Gaul 
Till  Caesar  cries  again  "Of  all 
The  bravest  are  the  Belgians!" 

0  lads  of  Liege,  brave  lads  of  Liege, 
Your   souls  through  glad   Elysium 
Go   chanting:     horum   omnium 
Fortissimi  sunt  Belgae! 


By  Percy   MacKaye,    from    "The   Present   Hour.' 

[27] 


The  Origin  of  Deponent  Verbs 

The  following  story  was  composed  by  two  first-year  girls  in  a 
Chicago  high  school.   It  appeared  originally  in  the  Classical  Journal: 

Once  upon  a  time,  hundreds  of  years  ago,  there  lived  a  young  hero  named 
Active  Verb.  One  day  when  he  was  riding  through  a  deep  forest,  he  came  upon  a 
hut.  He  entered  and  found  an  old  white-haired  man,  Antiquus  Vir,  crouched  in  a 
corner  weeping  bitterly. 

"Why  do  you  weep?"  asked  Active  Verb. 

"My  only  daughter,  Passive  Form,  has  been  kidnapped  by  young  Capio.  Alas, 
I  shall  never  see  her  again." 

Active  Verb  then  volunteered  to  follow  the  villian,  recapture  the  maiden  and 
restore  her  to  her  father.  The  old  man  called  down  upon  him  the  blessings  of  the 
immortal  gods  and  promised  him  that  if  he  should  succeed,  he  would  give  him  her 
hand  in  marriage. 

After  many  adventures  Active  Verb  returned,  bringing  with  him  the  lovely 
Passive  Form,  and  they  were  married  with  great  pomp. 

Now  in  this  home  was  born  a  marvelously  beautiful  daughter.  She  was  active 
in  her  disposition  but  resembled  her  mother,  Passive,  in  her  personal  appearance. 
They  named  her  Deponent. 

The  gods,  who  observed  all  these  things  from  high  Olympus,  were  so  pleased 
at  the  doings  of  the  family  that  they  conferred  upon  them  eternal  life.  They  make 
their  home  in  the  Latin  Grammar. 


[28] 


V 


